Richard II of England

Richard II of England (6 January 1367-14 February 1400) was the King of England from 21 June 1377 to 30 September 1399, succeeding Edward III of England and preceding Henry IV of England. A son of Edward the Black Prince, he inherited the throne through primogeniture succession when his grandfather died in 1377, and the young king crush Wat Tyler's Peasants' Revolt in 1381. However, the Lords Appellant took over the affairs of the government, and in 1397 he took his revenge on the lords by executing or exiling many of them. After John of Gaunt's death, Richard disinherited his son Henry Bolingbroke, so Bolingbroke invaded England in 1399 and deposed Richard II, seizing the throne for himself and another branch of the House of Plantagenet.

Early life
Richard was born on 6 January 1367 in Bordeaux, Duchy of Aquitaine, the son of Edward the Black Prince and the grandson of King Edward III of England. His five-year-old brother Edward of Angouleme's death in 1370 led to Richard becoming heir presumptive to the throne of England, and his own father's death in 1376 narrowly made Richard the heir to the throne. King Edward's death on 21 June 1377 led to the ten-year-old Richard being crowned "King Richard II", leaving control of the government to a series of councils. In 1381, the Peasants' Revolt of Wat Tyler broke out, and on 14 June 1381 he met the rebels at Mile End and agreed to abolish serfdom. However, the rebels massacred several members of his ruling council, and on 15 June he met the rebels at Smithfield and slew Wat Tyler. By November, the rebellion had been crushed. The revolt, however, led to the remaining few courtiers exercising control over England, and the "Lords Appellant" took power in 1387.

Downfall
In 1389, Richard retook control of England, as he was now 22 years old and able to rule as an adult. From 1389 to 1397, England was peaceful, with England signing a peace treaty with the Kingdom of France to temporarily end the Hundred Years' War. Art and culture flourished, and he exercised the "royal prerogative" to rule over England. However, he was consumed by a hunger for power, and he massacred the Lords Appellant in 1397 and disinherited his cousin Henry Bolingbroke, leading to Bolingbroke and other nobles rebelling against Richard's tyranny. Henry invaded England in June 1399, and his small force grew in numbers. On 30 September 1399, he was forced to abdicate, and he was starved to death in the Tower of London in 1400.